New Orleans voters gave disabled veterans a big break on
their property taxes, agreeing Saturday to double the homestead exemption for
those deemed 100 percent disabled by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

Qualified disabled veterans in Orleans Parish will be
allowed in 2015 to exempt the first $150,000 of their primary residential
property's assessed value. They will still have to pay taxes on any value the
property has beyond the first $150,000.

The City Council in January placed the measure on the March
15 ballot, giving voters in the city the chance to join other parishes across
Louisiana that grant veterans the additional tax break under a 2010 state law.